The relationship between newborn behavior patterns and reactivity categories at four months of age: implications for emotional self-regulation

J. K. Nugent, N. Snidman, J. Kagan, M. C. C. Shih, C. Matson, S. Bujoreanu, J. Gillette, S. Ming. Presented at the 14th World WAIMH Congress, Edinburgh, June 2014.

The purpose of this prospective study was to examine the relationship between specific newborn behavior patterns that are involved in developing self-regulation and infant temperament at four months of age. Previous research has suggested that behaviors at four months of age relate to behavioral profiles in the second year of life as well as to twelve and fifteen years of age (Kagan and Snidman, 1991, 2004; Kagan et al. 2007; Snidman and Kagan, 2007). The present study was designed to extend these findings to the newborn period. Methods: Seventy-two Caucasian healthy full-term newborns were observed and evaluated on the revised Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS-R) between 24-72 hours after birth. Each infant was classified as High or Low Cry, based on the number of crying episodes and as Easy or Difficult to Console, based on the capacity of the infant to be consoled during the administration of the NBAS. At four months, fifty-eight of the newborns (30 males) returned to the laboratory for a behavioral temperament assessment. Three temperament categories were derived from the assessment: High Reactive (high cry-high motor), Low Reactive (low cry-low motor) and Other (high cry-low motor and low cry-high motor). Also at one and four months of age, mothers filled out the Behavioral Observation Questionnaire (BOQ), a measure of cry and motor activity. Results: 78% of the infants classified as High Reactive at four months had been classified as High Cry in the newborn period, while only 38% of the other two groups were coded as High Cry in the newborn period (p.<03). In addition, 67% of infants classified as High Reactive at four months were classified as Difficult to Console in the newborn period, compared to 21% in the low-reactive and other categories (p.<01). There was no relation between newborn cry and consolability scores with BOQ scores at one month or 4 months. Conclusion: these results demonstrate a relationship between behavioral profiles important to self-regulation observed during the newborn period and temperamental categories at four months of age based on observed behaviors but no relation between the two ages based on mother report.